Bioactive compounds in hyperhydric and normal micropropagated shoots of Aronia melanocarpa (Michx.) Elliott

• High frequency of multiple shoot formation was achieved from nodal explants of Aronia melanocarpa.
• A combination of TDZ and NAA was found to be the best for shoot multiplication.
• High concentration of TDZ resulted in hyperhydric shoots.
• The levels of bioactive compounds were higher in greenhouse-grown in vitro plants.

An efficient in vitro propagation protocol was developed for the production of bioactive compounds from shoot cultures of Aronia melanocarpa (Michx.) Elliott. Nodal explants obtained from mature field-grown plants of A. melanocarpa were cultured on Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium supplemented with 0.25, 0.5, 1.0 or 2.0 mg l−1 thidiazuron (TDZ) alone or in combination with 0.1 or 0.5 mg l−1 α-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA) for shoot multiplication. Among the various concentrations of TDZ studied, the maximum frequency of shoot multiplication (85.2%), mean number of (10.4) shoots per explant and mean shoot length (3.2 cm) were obtained on MS medium fortified with 0.5 mg l−1 TDZ. The culture medium containing TDZ with low concentration of NAA produced more shoots than with high NAA concentration. The highest frequency of shoot multiplication (98.9%), mean number of (19.8) shoots per explant and mean shoot length (3.8 cm) were obtained on MS medium fortified with 0.5 mg l−1 TDZ and 0.1 mg l−1 NAA. Hyperhydric shoots were observed on MS medium fortified with 2.0 mg l−1 TDZ and 0.1 mg l−1 NAA. The highest frequency of rooted shoots (100%), mean number of (10.6) roots per shoot and mean root length (5.4 cm) were obtained on 1/2 MS medium fortified with 1.0 mg l−1 IBA after 30 days of culture. The in vitro-developed plantlets were successfully acclimatized in the greenhouse with 100% survival. The highest contents of carotenoids, α-tocopherol and fatty acids were found in leaves collected from greenhouse-grown in vitro plants followed by normal and hyperhydric leaves obtained from in vitro-regenerated shoots. All-E-lutein was the most abundant carotenoid (65.1–191.4 μg g−1 fresh weight) in A. melanocarpa leaf samples. Linolenic acid was the most abundant fatty acid in A. melanocarpa leaf samples tested, comprising 45.91–50.04% of total fatty acid.